


In Sickness and in Health

by greengreed



Category: Marvel, Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Crying, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Norman is still a douche even when he’s crying, Otto is trying his best, POV Third Person, Romance, Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-11
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2020-01-11 07:05:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18425367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greengreed/pseuds/greengreed
Summary: What happens when a villain wakes up with a bad dream? What happens when someone without a soul weeps? How does one find it in their soul to love a monster?





	In Sickness and in Health

Getting to sleep is difficult when you’re a couple of supervillains. Especially when one has four metal arms to account for. Norman and Otto decided the best way to deal with that was to pad them up, wrapping them in blankets and pillows before either of them drifted off. It made it much easier to find a comfortable position. 

They was no single position they typically slept in. Usually Norman just used Otto as his human teddy bear and Otto enjoyed that more than anything. Otto just cling to Norman like if he let go, he’d lose him. This particular night, Otto had his arms wrapped around Norman’s waist and was curled into his chest. He was warm there. Safe and warm. Norman had his chin resting on top of Otto’s head. One hand rested on the back of his partner’s neck, gently stroking it, and the other was around his waist. Their legs were tangled up together, which was what usually happened. They required such closeness to each other. 

Another issue with their sleep was nightmares. When one goes through a traumatic event to gain powers, it is often hard to forget and to walk away without scars. Said scars were be both physical and mental. Otto often woke up, panting and crying from the shock of the dream. To those on the outside, he was a condescending, blustering about his mighty strength and intellect. One could not forget, though, he hid a lot of trauma. A chaotic childhood, the death of his parents, an accident which caused him to forever be an anomaly... There was a lot to have nightmares about. 

Most nights when he woke up hysterically sobbing, his partner would come to his aid. It was hard not to be woken by the uncontrollable weeping. Norman would wake, typically groggy as ever, until he saw the sight before him. Calming Otto down took a while and a lot of kisses and hugs. Why the man took care of his scientist lover in this state was unknown. Seemingly, he was cold and unempathic. Why would he take care of someone, when the situation didn’t even affect him? Otto couldn’t put his finger on it, but he appreciated the love he received. 

This night, though, it wasn’t Otto who was woken by a nightmare. Instead, his paramour was having a bad dream. When you have a goblin talking to you in your head, it’s hard not to have a dream that frightens you every so often. What he dreamed about was unclear, but it struck him with a sense of fear so powerful that he couldn’t get back to sleep. He had to get up and walk around, but freeing himself from the grasp of his love would be tough. Otto had a tight grip and it was comfortable being beside him.

Soon enough, he’d slipped from Otto’s hold and was standing beside the bed. His footsteps didn’t make much sound as he began to leave the room, but Otto was seemingly awaken by the sound. He rubbed his eyes before he felt around for Norman, then looked over at him as he was leaving the room. 

“Where are you off to? Return to my side. I’d like to resume holding you close.” He groaned and patted the bed beside him. Despite the command, he was just desperate for some cuddling. He couldn’t sleep if he wasn’t accompanied by his beau, especially not if he knew Norman was upset about something. He could tell when he was genuinely upset. Not angry, not vengeful, not malicious, but upset. Genuinely unsettled and disturbed. 

“I need a glass of water. Go back to sleep.” Was the curt reply Otto recurved. That didn’t cut it. Otto, though still sluggish, gave a tug to Norman’s shirt with one of his metal limbs, which he snaked out from underneath a pile of blankets. Clearly, the businessman was not pleased by the insistence of the other man.

“Rejoin me and tell me about what’s wrong. Are you being bothered by night terrors? If so, you know you can tell me about that. I do hope you feel comfortable enough telling me about the things that scare you. I only want to protect you as best as I can.” Otto’s comments did strike a cord. Norman was stubborn, so he left the room and got some water (to Otto’s dismay), but was back to bed within a minute (to Otto’s delight). He took a long drink, before laying down in bed beside Otto, but not touching him. 

“I’d rather go back to sleep. I don’t want to share my dream. I know you think you’re entitled to know everything about me because you’re my partner, but you aren’t. I’m going back to sleep.” Norman was snappy about it and turned on his side so his back faced his companion. Otto frowned about that. What bothered him this much? What could it have been. 

“Please, I only wish to help you. Confide in me like I do to you. All I want is to comfort you.” As he spoke, Otto wrapped his arms around Norman, essentially spooning him. He hoped the position would make him feel comforted as well. Warm, like he felt in the moments when he was just snuggled up against his lover’s chest, drifting off to sleep. His hands caressed his chest, tracing the raised areas of his muscles and bones. 

“Fine, Otto. If you insist. If you must know, it was about my father.” He finally confessed. He paused before continuing. This was so personal it almost burned. He felt so weak. Beyond weak. Vulnerable. “I see him in dreams often. I remember the times he’d lock me in the dark or strike me and I feel dread like I haven’t since I was young. I’m confused by it. He made me a man, I grew from each of his actions, yet they still scare me. Why? It’s been decades. I have no idea.”

“I understand. That must have been hard for you to cope with, considering you are still dealing with it after all these years.” Otto buried his head into Norman’s back as his fingers continued their work, tracing every little line on his chest. Norman shuddered at the sensation. There was a warmth to each touch of Otto’s, a pleasant burning feeling that radiated from each touch. 

“Don’t pity me. I wish I hadn’t mentioned it.” He would have pulled away from Otto’s touch, had it not been so comforting to him. The six-armed man responded by pulling him closer. He gripped him tight, pulling him in. 

“Stop doing this.” Pleaded the scientist. “You consistently do this. You push me away when you clearly need my assistance. Just let me hold you. Cry, if you must. I just want you to be a feeling human for a mere five seconds. I want to see you feel. Please.”

Norman wasn’t happy with that statement. He had reasons for suppressing his negative emotions. He was raised that way. Push things down, be a man. In addition, sometimes it was too painful to express negative emotions. Talking to Otto about his father was not an option. Talking to anyone about his father probably would never happen. He didn’t open up and he wouldn’t open up, even in this intimate relationship.

“Stop talking, just— Shh.” The businessman flipped around, so his chest was pressed up against Otto’s. His finger went immediately to his lips. He wanted silence. He couldn’t talk about his problems, he was too far gone at this point. He’d never work out his issues. It’d been more than four decades since his trauma and his ego got in the way of him working through any issues and talking about it. All he could do is work through the dark moments with Otto.

Norman’s hands wrapped around Otto’s waist and his hands travelled underneath his shirt. His head was buried into his lover’s plush chest. Otto understood that he needed these sensations now. His man was not in the right state at the moment. He just needed to feel something physical. 

Norman’s hands ran across every curve, birthmark, scar, and stretch mark on Otto’s body. He felt the metal on his skin where the metal arms connected to his back. His hands wandered wherever they wanted. The feeling of Otto’s skin under his fingertips was so real. Something tangible that he could feel.

Otto didn’t know what to do with his hands. They went to his partner’s sides, running up and down. He didn’t know how he was supposed to act in this moment. It was hard to cope with this himself. His partner was emotionally repressed beyond belief. He couldn’t help him work out his issues. He’d tried before. He’d tried before this to get him to open up. He’d heard about his past, but never how it made him feel. It had to have cut deep. If it was something he’d hardly talk about, then it had to be painful, right? 

Norman’s hands moved upwards on Otto’s body, beneath his shirt, until he was at his shoulder blades, keeping his hands there. His nose was nestled right in the middle of Otto’s chest and his head fit right under his chin. The two spent a long time in this position, simply holding each other close. 

The comfiness lasted for a while until Otto began to feel a slight moisture accumulating on the front of his shirt, around his chest. What was that? Oh. It took him only a moment to realize that the man on his chest had been crying. Otto made sure to feign ignorance. Pretend he didn’t even notice his quiet sobs. He couldn’t bring it up. Norman would deny it until he was dead, it would hurt his ego too much to admit.

Norman didn’t know why the dream had so overwhelmed him. It opened up a thousand wounds he thought were healed. Nothing was really healed, though. Until he confronted his issues, nothing would be healed. That’s why nothing would get better. He’d have money, he’d have fame, he’d have success but he’d never be completely whole. He didn’t have his mind to himself. He was emotionally a mess of open sores and wounds that he refused to treat. He believed he could suck it up. Be a man, right? His father would have wanted it that way. 

He’d wept openly before. It was just hard to do so in front of someone in such a personal setting like this. Tears started to flow more heavily, staining the fabric of Otto’s shirt temporarily. It was too obvious that he was crying now to ignore. The sounds he made no longer remained silenced. 

“I’d just like you to know I won’t be leaving you at anytime. Weep in front of me if you’d like. It won’t change my opinion of you in the slightest. You’ll still be one of the most stubborn, cruel, determined, cold-hearted, successful men I’ve ever met, if not the most. Despite this, I love you for it. When you hurt, I experience a similar pain.” Otto confessed. Despite the several, unlovable flaws Norman possessed, Otto loved him for some reason. He could fix him, but he’d hold him when he hurt and wipe his tears from his eyes. He wanted to be there when he cries, laughs, and even when he throws people off bridges. In every good and bad moment.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for making it all the way through!!
> 
> Honestly sorry if this sucks. I love angsty fics. A lot of my fics probably make Otto look super weak... so I wanted him to look stronger here. But then Norman seems kinda weak... It’s hard finding a good balance because they’re both assholes. Assholes with feelings!! Assholes who have been hurt! I try to express that in my writing and I hope it comes through!! I hope you enjoyed!!


End file.
